From the fear of jobsite risks of physical injury and death to musculoskeletal deterioration due to the physically demanding and repetitious nature of the work—not to mention adverse conditions, long hours, short seasons and layoffs, and high-pressure situations and timelines—the industry is hard on workers’ bodies and minds.

There are countless economic, societal, organizational, and individual determinants that can and do impact a construction worker’s health and well-being, which is why greater efforts are being taken industry-wide to shine a light on the single greatest risk being faced on construction sites everywhere: mental health and suicide.

Understanding the impacts
Mental health, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), “is a state of mental well-being that enables people to cope with the stresses of life, realize their abilities, learn well and work well, and contribute to their community. It is an integral component of health and well-being that underpins our individual and collective abilities to make decisions, build relationships and shape the world we live in.”

The WHO also notes that mental health is not always characterized by the absence of disorders alone. It is a continuum that includes mental disorders, psychosocial disabilities, and other states that result in negative experiences.

Mental health issues do not discriminate; they can impact anyone in any industry at any time. Issues can range from depression and anxiety, to eating disorders, drug and alcohol abuse disorders, and worse—risk of self-harm or suicide. In fact, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), construction has one of the highest rates of suicide behind only mining at 53.2 suicides per 100,000 people. This is four times higher than the general population.

What is more, construction workers die more by suicide annually than the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) fatal four jobsite accidents, with the loss of a construction worker every one and a half to two hours—but these are not likely recorded as construction-related fatalities.

A 2020 study by Construction Industry Rehabilitation Plan indicated that 83 percent of construction workers surveyed have experienced some form of moderate to severe mental health issue. The U.S. alone has eight million construction workers, so 83 percent is not an insignificant amount. The same year, a study by the International Foundation of Employee Benefits across 35 Canadian apprenticeship programs found that 68 percent reported suffering from anxiety disorders, 51 percent reported being depressed, and 46 percent reported alcohol or drug abuse.

Construction workers indicate high rates of drug and alcohol abuse, which is intrinsically linked to greater job safety risks. Certainly, childhood trauma and other factors influence these figures, but there are construction-specific issues that exacerbate drug and alcohol use. A study on Suicide Risk and Mental Disorders by Louise Brådvik showed that, generally speaking, 90 percent of people who die by suicide typically have a pre-existing mental health condition, but that doesn’t mean that the conditions in the construction industry have no role to play.

Chronic pain and high rates of musculoskeletal disorders caused by workplace injuries or repetitive strain injuries from doing the same work for years are among the leading causes of addiction in the construction industry. Many workers are prescribed drugs to help with pain and it often results in dependency. Construction is ranked first in pain reliever abuse, marijuana use, and heroin use of all industries and a study conducted by the Ontario government looking at opioid deaths by profession between 2017 and 2018 found that 31 percent were construction workers.

These staggering figures are why more is being done to overcome stigmas surrounding mental health, to encourage more people to report the need for support while ensuring the provision of support is available when needed.

How to improve mental health outcomes in construction
When it comes to mental health in the workplace, employers have a duty of care to offer benefits and support to workers and luckily, most organizations see the value in investing in improving mental health outcomes.

One of the barriers to accessing mental health resources and support is a failure to report. A 2021 study by the American Psychiatric Association Foundation’s Center for Workplace Mental Health revealed that only 17 percent of workers feel comfortable openly discussing their mental health struggles with a supervisor and the figure grows by only one percent when it comes to speaking to a co-worker.

From organization-wide campaigns to improved employee assistance programs (EAPs) and targeted toolbox talks for workers on site, there are many ways to meet workers where they are to ensure that their mental health and well-being is prioritized alongside their physical safety.

Other strategies that can be employed include:
Early intervention. Be sure to watch for indicators of dysfunction. Warning signs could be grievances, injury claims, EAP utilization, staff turnover, loss of productivity and problem-solving ability, an increase in conflicts, more near hits, incidents, or injuries, and lateness or absenteeism.

Combat the stigma. One of the most vital changes employers must make to address mental health outcomes in construction is to eliminate the stigma that comes with seeking help for mental health challenges. An effective way to do that is to change the culture that prevents workers from coming forward to seek resources and support. In a culture that has been historically viewed as hypermasculine, it may require the shedding of this image in favour of a more empathetic and compassionate approach.

Reduce the risk of injury. Mental health impacts all levels of an organization and can send ripple effects from the executive level to the job site. As such, it must be taken as seriously as physical safety and integrated into a company’s health and safety plan. By establishing clear policies and procedures to follow, including the standardization of accommodations and a flexible return to work plan, employers can improve access to resources and support while safeguarding the health and well-being of their people and jobsites.

Train your staff and designate mental health and safety leaders. It is time to start treating mental health as part of a company’s overall health and safety program. Staff should be trained and representatives designated as a point of contact to ensure that employees have access to effective care and support. This chain of support creates a system of monitoring to ensure that a bridge is created between the worker and available resources.

Be willing to improve. At the end of the day, to improve mental health outcomes in the workplace, be it in construction or any other industry, the most important thing to do is to evaluate and improve at every opportunity, being proactive rather than reactive when it comes to mental health as part of a worker’s overall well-being. By focusing on work-life balance, education and awareness, and outreach, the culture of the construction industry will change to reflect a more open, accommodating field where workers feel comfortable reporting and can navigate the resources and support available to them.

Acknowledge the impact. Increasingly, employers are heeding the call to improve mental health in construction. By acknowledging that mental health is a safety risk in itself, we can work together to improve outcomes and institute the many small changes that amount to a comprehensive approach. Mental health outcomes can be improved across the entire sector, and most importantly, lives can be saved.

Sidebar:
Resources for Help
This year, Construction Suicide Prevention Week is being held September 9 to 13, 2024, which is a great opportunity to shine a light on resources and support available to workers.
If you are struggling with your mental health and require immediate support, there are resources to consult:
Online chat: 988lifeline.org/chat
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-TALK (8255)
If you are interested in learning more about available resources for your organization, you can visit OSHA’s Preventing Suicide in Construction page: Preventing Suicides in Construction | Occupational Safety and Health Administration (osha.gov) or the Construction Industry Alliance for Suicide Prevention: CIASP Home (preventconstructionsuicide.com).

The post A Silent Killer No More<p class="company">Mental Health Concerns in Construction</p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

“There is strength in numbers and being part of an energetic community of peers and competitors,” President Nicole Harris says.

Always a vital material, glass rose to the forefront during the COVID pandemic, when it was used as an essential safety product to help stop the spread of the virus. While that crisis has thankfully passed, glass continues to play a critical role around the globe. “Our mission is to save the world with glass,” Harris summarizes.

A world without glass would be uncomfortably dark and dreary. “Glass is really core to everybody’s quality of life,” Harris points out. “Can you imagine living or working or sending your kids to school or taking care of a sick parent in a dark, concrete bunker?” In fact, using glass to brighten our lives with natural light has been found to improve mental health. “There are a lot of studies about how natural daylight improves learning and healing, and never mind just being in a good mood. We’re envisioning a future in which glass is the material of choice to enhance spaces where people live, play, learn, work, and heal.”

Advantages of membership
“Our purpose as a trade association is to promote and protect the interests of our glass and glazing members,” says Harris, “and they make up the entire supply chain.” She uses a pyramid to illustrate this concept. At the very top are the float glass manufacturers. “They’re taking sand and other raw materials and making the glass that you see on your tabletop and your shower doors, on the high-rise buildings, and the windows and doors in your home. There is a very small number of those big manufacturers.”

The next category of membership includes the glass and metal fabricators. “They’re taking that raw glass, and they’re doing something with it,” Harris says. “They’re putting holes in it; they’re laminating it; they’re putting coatings on it.”

And then come the installing companies, which are “at the bottom of that pyramid just because of their size and number.” These members do everything from installing a glass shower door in your home to installing the massive amounts of glass found in a modern skyscraper.

Low annual dues deliver a wealth of benefits to each of these member segments. “That’s an important distinction for NGA,” Harris says. “We can afford to keep our dues very low because we produce very profitable events and publish profitable magazines.”

Maintaining this profitably has taken a concerted effort. “It’s a tough deal to publish economically,” she says of today’s publishing industry, “but we have figured out how to do it.” NGA’s two publications, Glass Magazine and Window + Door, keep members abreast of the latest industry news, financial knowledge, and product announcements.

GlassBuild America: The Glass, Window & Door Expo, is North America’s largest annual show for the glass and fenestration industries, and this massive event is another means through which the association keeps dues low. “It’s really our trade show primarily that allows us to do everything else,” Harris says. “It underwrites everything we do—our technical publications which the industry relies on, our education initiatives, online training, recruitment resources.”

Indeed, education and training are foundational to NGA’s mission. “All of our net profits go into funding these very sophisticated educational and training online programs,” Harris says. “We’re just rolling them out all the time.” At MyGlassClass.com, members can access over one hundred courses in both English and Spanish. The association also offers a very popular apprenticeship program.

“We’ve spent a lot of money and a lot of attention and resources on the education element,” Harris says. This effort includes hiring instructional designers, trained to meet adult learning needs, to ensure that NGA’s educational programs are effective.

NGA also has an online store with free technical resources, as well as manuals, guides, and books that come with a member discount.

Glass goes high-tech
The glass industry is advancing at a rapid pace. “It’s a very, very technical industry,” Harris says, which may come as a surprise to many. “We’re walking down the street and see a piece of glass and [think], ‘no big deal.’ Well, that piece of glass may have multiple coatings, maybe multiple layers of glass, lamination… There are so many high-tech applications to what you’re looking through. It’s pretty extraordinary,” she says.

“We’re talking about thousands, tens of thousands or more of really, really innovative products,” Harris continues. “And they meet the requirements for energy efficiency, daylighting, school security, bird- and turtle-friendly glass,” which is specially designed to protect these animals from harm. “It’s just incredible, the technology that’s come up.” Other examples include the strong, laminated glass the industry has developed for security purposes, and vacuum insulated glass (VIG), a very thin, highly efficient insulating glass ideal for cold climates.

NGA helps industry insiders navigate the rapidly evolving technology by providing technical manuals to its members for free or at a very low cost. The association also maintains a portal that helps members meet current codes and standards as technology impacts the industry. “It’s really important to follow those health and safety [regulations],” Harris points out. “There are reasons why we have building codes.”

The future of glass
The glass industry faces some challenges that NGA is working to overcome. “Like many industries, I’d say top of mind is the skilled labor shortage,” Harris says. “You can’t escape that anywhere you look. It’s always in the news and it’s true for us… Everybody’s competing for talent. That’s why we are focusing so hard on the education piece and helping our members attract new people.”

To this end, NGA’s downloadable recruitment kit provides materials to help its members illustrate to potential employees the benefits of a career in the glass industry.

“Beyond that, there are still a lot of misconceptions about glass in the built environment,” Harris says. “I think that’s a messaging issue.” In response, NGA is actively spreading awareness about the benefits of glass and its ability to improve our lives. “We’re working to advance the entire glass and glazing mindset and view of what we can do to benefit the built environment and by extension, humanity,” Harris says.

The United Nations recognized the industry’s importance by naming 2022 the International Year of Glass, and NGA is making sure that the industry remains strong through 2024 and beyond, as the challenges and expectations evolve in the years to come.

“It’s not just a job,” Harris says. “I believe in this industry. I believe in our members’ ability.” And, as these members continue to make a positive impact by bringing glass to our built environment, NGA will continue to support them, doing its part to save the world with glass far into the future.

The post Saving the World with Glass<p class="company">National Glass Association</p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

“We focus on the exterior,” says Chief Operating Officer Chris Shin. “A good part of our work is commercial, healthcare, and stadium projects. Another big part, for the glass and glazing division, are condos and mid-high rises.”

Among the company’s strengths are design and engineering, project and field management, and fabrication. Design and engineering includes design-assist, an approach in which specialists are involved in the earliest stages of the design process. Project and field management covers planning, scheduling, supply chain management—with input on procurement and field crew management—encompassing both site logistics and management, and value engineering, which includes design evaluation.

Manufacturing centers on aluminum composite (ACM) panels, aluminum doors and windows, and custom sheet metal fabrication. Fabricated wares are shipped to the client’s jobsite. EGA field crews take care of commercial roofing, glass, and metal panel installation.

As per its design-assist ethos, the company works with clients even when they have only “a rough sketch of the building,” says Shin. “We go in and speak with them about their design intent, and then we recommend what products they can use and different [solutions] that will create the system they want for their building. Once we have a clear idea of what the client wants, we start engineering the system [according to] local code requirements, window requirements, and things of that nature.”

Most of the company’s work is self-performed. “The only things we really sub-contract out are the core materials that we use,” Shin says. “We have a lot of different vendors for glass and aluminum frames and panels. Manufacturers create those things; we take those core materials, design them, and do fabrication.” For such tasks, EGA partners with manufacturers such as Kawneer, a Georgia-based business that produces aluminum curtain walls, doors, windows, and framing.

In addition to its head office, the company has a branch in the town of Front Royal, Virginia. While many projects take place in the states in which it is based, the team has also taken on assignments in Ohio, Florida, Utah, Tennessee, and Washington, D.C., among other locales. The firm will travel wherever there are “monumental projects that require its expertise,” says Shin.

“The Atlanta Braves stadium is one of the projects we’re very proud of. That was our first stadium project,” he states. “Orlando’s INTER&Co Stadium was a fun one too. That has a big logo of a lion at the main entrance. We designed that for them [it’s made up of 154 unique pieces!] and now, we’re working on a [Veteran’s Administration] hospital in Kentucky. That’s a pretty large job—around $40 million. That’s one of the bigger projects.”

EGA’s work at Truist Park—the official name of the baseball stadium that hosts the Atlanta Braves—involved a sub-roof, insulated wall panels, single-skin wall panels, faux wood panels, and soffit panels. Work at Orlando’s INTER&Co Stadium involved insulated panels, perforated panels, a sub-roof, wind screen, modular panels, and thermoplastic polyolefin (TPO) roofing.

Other prominent projects included work on sub-roofs at Chicago’s legendary Wrigley Field and Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City, Utah, and impact-resistant glass at a Georgia-based Facebook data center. EGA has worked on storefronts, auto showroom doors, and sliding doors at the Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta as well.

Every project it undertakes is a testament to the company’s intense commitment to quality. As part of its quality assurance/quality control program, EGA thoroughly reviews and evaluates all project drawings, designs, and specifications to ensure excellence and regulatory compliance. The firm investigates quality assurance programs run by its suppliers and arranges equipment audits before and during the manufacturing process.

“We really try to have our team members in the shop understand the product and how things go together. One of the ways we found to do that is by making a story board. A story board is a step by step [depiction] of how you fabricate things. We have pictures [that show] how these things are put together,” says Shin.

The story board method is also used with installers, he adds. When a building project involves the installation of windows, EGA will conduct water tests whereby windows are sprayed with water and subjected to other physical tests to determine if they will leak under adverse weather conditions. These quality control tests are also conducted for the company’s other scopes of work.

The company takes an equally far-reaching approach when it comes to safety. Field staff and office managers are required to take Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) training, and Shin is an OSHA-certified instructor who is licensed to perform certain types of training. Staff members are required to discuss safety issues, concerns, or accidents at toolbox meetings and other opportunities.

While COVID caused massive disruptions to the economy, EGA was not hugely affected. The company’s work was considered essential, so it did not have to close down. “That allowed our people to continue working,” recalls Shin. “We had a lot of projects that were ongoing at the time, so we were able to kind of ride it out. Operationally, there were challenges; people were sick. We had to deal with not having enough manpower at times, but we took [the necessary] precautions and tried to keep everyone safe.”

EGA can trace its origins to the vision and drive of entrepreneur Peter Kim. After graduating from George Mason University in Virginia, he took a job at a roofing company run by his brother-in-law in North Carolina. Kim first worked as a field laborer then founded his own company, Eastern Contractors Corporation, in 1998.

Eastern Contractors Corporation primarily did roofing at first but branched out to become a general industrial contractor. Headquartered in Suwanee, Georgia, it continues to offer contracting and construction management services to industrial clients across North America. It has developed a unique niche building clean rooms and dry rooms for manufacturers who make electric vehicles (EVs) and EV batteries.

In 2014, Eastern Glass and Aluminum was established as an Eastern Contractors Corporation subsidiary, tasked with working on building envelopes. Kim’s background ensured that EGA was a focused, forward-looking business from the beginning. “Our founder, he started as a laborer… so we had a very good foundation on how to run this business. We had a really tight ship,” states Shin. These subsidiaries are housed under Eastern Companies.

EGA recently pioneered the launch of a new division under Eastern Companies called Elevate Architectural Products, which currently imports and sells architectural products from South Korea. “One of the products we’re selling now is called ALFA panels. Basically, these are composite panels that are fire-resistant and NFPA-285 (National Fire Protection Association) approved,” he says. The company is laying down the groundwork to broaden its opportunities.

EGA wants to focus on current operations and building Elevate’s presence within the architectural product market. There are no plans to add any other new divisions for the time being. “I think we’re going to stick with what we have,” he says. “If anything, we’re trying to expand some of our production capacity here.”

It is a solid strategy, given that the team is now regularly earning industry kudos for its work. The company has been consistently listed in the Top 50 Glaziers List compiled annually by Glass Magazine, a trade publication. The list encompasses firms from across North America, and last year, Eastern Glass and Aluminum climbed to sixteenth place. “Every year we’ve been making our way [onto] the list and going up,” says Shin proudly.

And EGA’s success is not the result of splashy marketing. In fact, until the last few years, the company had not done much traditional marketing at all. “Our work has been our advertisement,” Shin notes. “Our commitment to excellence and follow-through with on-time project delivery marketed itself.”

With the company’s growth, EGA aims to pursue even larger projects. To do so, it has invested in its Marketing and Business Development department. With labor shortages in the construction industry, the team’s strategy involves expanding its social media presence, particularly on LinkedIn, and this social media activity focuses on enticing potential new workers. The plan is to make people aware “that we have a very good culture, and we’re a cool place to work. This has been helpful in promoting the firm with the younger generations,” he says. “The development of this department has also allowed us to focus on new initiatives while maintaining our quality of work in our project execution.”

Over the next few years, Shin hopes to see EGA become one of the leading building envelope contractors in America, while bolstering its manufacturing segment and the new Elevate division. “Our strategy involves enabling our top performers and attracting key players to further propel our achievements. I want it to be known that we are a company that provides opportunity to grow. If they are willing to give their best, they have a really good chance to contribute here.” The unwavering commitment to delivering exceptional work stands as a clear indicator of EGA’s aspirations for continued growth and expansion.

The post Building Exterior Experts Mark a Major Corporate Milestone<p class="company">Eastern Glass and Aluminum </p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

Asked how AGM has managed to survive and thrive over the decades, President Greg Young cites three factors: workforce, vendors, and clients.

“The team we have is obviously our strength,” he says. “And then also our vendors—we find them to be equally important. And we want to work for good clients, we want to use quality products… our relationship with all three of those is very, very important and has contributed to the longevity and growth of the company,” states Young.

Specific services rendered by the firm include contract glazing, installation and repair, and remedial repair.

“Remedial repair is basically looking at leaking buildings, sick buildings, and determining what’s going on and then remediating it. A lot of times it’s something as simple as caulking or replacing flashing or something along those lines,” explains Young.

Markets served include automotive, pharmaceutical, banking, education, office, healthcare, interior, museums, mixed use, and religious institutions. “We pretty much do anything non-residential,” Young explains. “Sometimes we will [do residential] if it’s helping out a client, but for the most part, we stick to commercial projects. We’re doing quite a bit of work for universities here in Indiana—Purdue University, Indiana University, Butler, Marian. So, between healthcare and education, that keeps us pretty busy.”

In addition to its Indianapolis headquarters, the company has branches in Cincinnati, Ohio and Nashville, Tennessee. Each branch maintains separately managed contract and service departments. The former handles most installations while the latter takes care of maintenance, repairs, and small installations. AGM also offers a 24/7 emergency response service for property management companies.

While primarily serving clients in the Midwest and Mid-South, AGM has traveled as far afield as St. Martin, an island in the Caribbean, for installation work. One such project was completed at the behest of a Cincinnati-based client. “We will venture out… If it works for our client and it works for us, we will do it,” says Young, citing assignments in Florida and the Research Triangle—an area renowned for universities and R&D facilities in North Carolina.

On design-build work or remodeling projects, AGM may be hired directly by the client or owner, but the firm is typically brought into projects by a general contractor. For most construction jobs, AGM works as part of a team of tradespeople.

Sometimes, due to schedule requirements, AGM may subcontract items such as caulking, but otherwise nearly all work is done in-house; “for the most part, we self-perform. We buy the material, we fabricate it, we install it,” states Young.

Founded in 1984 by Greg Menefee and partners, the firm “started small” and was initially based in a “dilapidated building,” recalls Young. The company grew and became a major success story, adding a Cincinnati office in 2004. That same year, Young became a minority owner in the firm. A Nashville branch was launched in 2008, and Young became sole owner on October 31, 2017.

There have been a few bumps along the way. The opening of the Nashville office coincided with the 2008 – 2009 economic recession, says Young. Then, in early 2020, the COVID virus went pandemic, unleashing global economic turmoil. “We were fortunate to be considered essential workers, so we were able to work,” says Young.

The firm applied Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines regarding masking and social distancing. Of course, AGM also had to cope with COVID-related supply chain disruptions, including longer lead times for receiving products and price hikes.

Employment at the firm fluctuated from a pre-COVID high of over 140 to around 120 people today, and now that COVID has subsided, AGM is on the rebound. When considering job applicants, the company looks for certain traits. “Reliability is huge, dependability is huge, and trainability… I tell [people], if you show up here and you want to learn, I will hire anyone. We will give anyone an opportunity,” says Young.

He strongly encourages a “team environment” in the workplace: “Everyone has a role to play here, and we value each of these roles… But we’re all willing to help each other be successful. That’s something that also sets us apart,” he states.

Young served in the U.S. Navy and as such, AGM is a certified veteran-owned business. The firm hosts golf outings and other fundraisers, many of which are organized to benefit veteran organizations. For example, AGM once hosted a golf outing to raise money for Indy Honor Flight, a charity that flies veterans of World War II and the Korean and Vietnam wars to Washington, DC to visit military monuments.

“This year, we’re supporting a program called Pets Healing Vets, through the Humane Society. They supply trained emotional support animals to veterans that have PTSD or traumatic brain injuries at no cost. They cover the cost for the pet for the rest of their life,” says Madeline Young, Greg’s daughter, an Indiana University graduate, and AGM’s first Marketing Coordinator.

In addition to its community involvement, doing high-quality work on high-profile projects is another way AGM stands out. Greg Young points to an assignment involving the IU Health Neuroscience Center in downtown Indianapolis. A striking building with a primarily glass façade resembling an ocean wave, the facility is operated under the auspices of IU Health and the Indiana University School of Medicine.

“It was a very challenging job both in the design and then having our fabrication manager [fabricate it], and then getting it installed in the field… It was successful, for all the complexity to it. That’s one we like to showcase,” says Young.

Other key projects include the Indianapolis Museum of Art and Indianapolis Children’s Museum; the Forum Credit Union headquarters in Fishers, Indiana; National City Bank in Cincinnati; and CapStar Bank in Nashville. The company’s automotive projects feature glasswork for Porsche, Mini Cooper, and Lexus dealerships, all in Nashville.

Given that AGM works with glass, it’s no surprise that safety is paramount at the firm. AGM has two full-time safety workers—a Safety Director who handles administrative tasks, and a Safety Officer who goes out in the field to assist with safety efforts. Each branch maintains a safety leader who liaises with the head office in Indianapolis.

“All of our management, project managers, and field foremen are OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) 30-hour certified. Every other AGM team member in the company, regardless of their role, does the 10-hour OSHA course. That’s kind of unique; even the receptionist does the 10-hour course,” adds Young.

Representatives of each branch convene on a quarterly basis with the Safety Director and Safety Officer to discuss safety issues. Participants at these meetings “talk about any situations that might have happened—near misses, anything like that,” explains Young. Each branch is a drug-free certified workplace and staff also receive training in First Aid and CPR.

Young cites labor and recruiting new workers as the biggest challenge facing AGM at present, an issue that reflects a broader, industry-wide trend in which existing workers in skilled trades are approaching retirement age and insufficient numbers of young people are stepping up to replace them. AGM’s woes are compounded by the fact that many people are unclear about the work the company performs. “Our trade is not necessarily well-known. If you go into a high school and ask, ‘What does a plumber do?’ they know. You ask, ‘What does a glazier do?’ and they just look at you,” notes Young.

To get the word out, AGM runs an apprentice program and raises awareness about glasswork and the firm’s services by reaching out to high schools and attending trade shows. Madeline Young is also spearheading an effort to enhance the company’s social media presence.

“We have Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn,” she explains. “LinkedIn is probably one of our most popular. We have started doing more lunch and learns—going to general contractors and other clients of ours and providing lunch for them while presenting our capabilities and how we’d like to be trade partners. We’ve really grown our reach and presence within the last year.”

Going forward, AGM is looking to introduce some new products but is keeping the details under wraps at present. Greg Young is more forthcoming when it comes to demonstrating his pride in the company he leads and the people who work for AGM. After reaching its 40^th anniversary, Architectural Glass & Metal Company changed its logo to mark this milestone achievement.

As for the future, “I would like to see us back up on our growth trajectory that we were on before COVID. Looking at other markets is important… I think with things we’ve learned and done over the years, another market would help us with that growth plan, make us more diverse.” We look forward to seeing how the next 40 years play out for this longstanding and dynamic company.

The post Looking Ahead After Reaching a Milestone Anniversary<p class="company">Architectural Glass & Metal Company</p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

The company maintains its corporate headquarters in Streetsboro, Ohio, as well as additional locations in Cleveland, Ohio, Bonita Springs, Florida, and Los Angeles, California.

“Our vision is to be the best total service company which provides the Full-Cycle Approach to assure our clients’ success in ‘building’ their future,” the company website, geiscompanies.com, explains. To accomplish this goal, the award-winning design-build company maintains five different divisions: Geis Development, Geis Construction, GLSD Architects, Geis Property Management, and GDOT Design.

Specialist divisions
Geis Development’s services can be customized for the individual client. The team always makes a special effort to listen closely to each client’s unique needs to help them achieve their end goal. Collaboration with both private and public stakeholders is emphasized, ensuring that the team makes the best use of any available resources.

The company has a wide variety of projects throughout the country at any given time, from multifamily buildings to industrial facilities. Specific areas of expertise include site planning, leases with an option to buy, financing options, mixed-use development, site acquisition, long-term rates, development services, multi-tenant, build to suit, feasibility testing, long-term sale-leaseback, project underwriting, creative debt structure, and the coordination of governmental incentives.

Indeed, Geis Construction will take on every step of the building process, starting with the initial concept all the way through to completion. From ground-up projects to renovations or expansions of an existing facility, the team can handle it all. With 50 years of design-build experience, the company has been responsible for an enormous range of projects, ranging in size from five acres all the way up to one thousand acres.

Geis Construction prides itself on delivering a streamlined process. During the planning and feasibility phase, the team carries out the site assessment, master planning, conceptual design and programming, accurate initial budget, and the agency reviews and approvals.

Next comes the design phase, which covers project development design, renderings, contract development, construction documents, and interior design.

During the construction phase, the team handles project scheduling, subcontractor selection, project management, documentation, and quality control.

GLSD Architects began as an in-house design staff within Geis Companies. Since then, GLSD Architects has grown into a full-service architectural firm. The team takes a practical approach to architecture and emphasizes deep collaboration with clients in order to create functional spaces that best represent them.

“We understand that our design can greatly increase a company’s overall productivity and success by creating an efficient layout, appropriate budget, and a sense of pride,” the company website details.

The result is the creation of “unique environments, beginning with space planning and spatial formation all the way through selection of engineering systems, finishes, and furnishings,” the company website says. To deliver these services, GLSD Architects employs architects, engineers, interior designers, and LEED-certified professionals. This division specializes in space planning, program development, design development, construction administration, interior design, and engineering services.

Geis Property Management is a leading provider of full-service residential, multi-family, and commercial property management throughout Northeastern Ohio. The company delivers management services via experienced property management professionals armed with proven systems and a full-service approach, so that every client’s property will perform to its highest potential.

Geis Property Management currently manages more than 7 million square feet of space ranging from office, industrial, and retail to residential and multi-family. This division handles site location services, asset management, residential leasing, property leasing, inspections and maintenance, tenant retention programs, facility management, and renovations.

Meanwhile, GDOT Design is a full-service architectural, engineering, and interiors company that began its life as an interior design firm. After growing and evolving, the company is now licensed to deliver complete architectural services.

GDOT Design’s comprehensive interior design packages are specially tailored to fit each client’s budget and unique needs. The team’s work begins with space planning and spatial formation and continues through to the selection of finishes, furnishings, and systems, and company-wide cooperation is emphasized throughout the process. “Because we are construction-based, we work differently than other firms; we routinely work hand in hand with the other Geis teams to deliver what was promised, on time, and in budget, balanced by our expertise in understanding a client’s space and functional needs,” the company website details.

Specific areas of expertise provided by GDOT Design include space planning, program development, design development, construction administration, construction documents, interior design, and engineering services.

Projects to watch
Geis Companies has several recently completed and current projects worth noting. These include The Centro, a luxury apartment community in Fort Myers, Florida, featuring 264 upscale apartments filled with amenities. Also located in Fort Myers, Florida, Legacy 500K is a new 500,000 square foot spec distribution center/warehouse complex.

In Ohio, Turnpike Commerce Center is a new, 470 acre fully designed master-planned park providing approximately 1,021,980 square feet for industrial use, while in Cleveland, The Abbey is a 142-unit residential development that includes a five-story apartment building with 132 units and 10 townhomes, located within the antiquated suburb of Duck Island. In Ravenna, Ohio, the LG Chemical development includes a 98,111 square foot customer solutions center and a 155,596 square foot ABS pellet manufacturing facility.

And The Calabash Shores, located in Calabash, North Carolina, is a luxury senior living development that includes a three-story apartment complex with elevator access and ranch-style garden homes.

With nearly 60 years of experience, strong growth, multiple specialized divisions, and a number of exciting projects on the go, Geis Companies has earned its leading place in the market. This business will surely be one to watch as it continues to expand and make its mark within the industry.

The post A Full-Service Approach to Construction<p class="company">Geis Companies</p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

At Scott Edwards Architecture, the projects are as diverse as its team, and when these creative minds come together, their collaborative efforts result in thoughtful, functional, and aesthetic properties that have the power to build community.

Living its values
The work at Scott Edwards Architecture is empowered by its mission and ethos, People First. Design Forward., which is a value the company lives and something that ensures true project success.

“I love our ethos because good things will come if we put people first and that includes the culture of our firm. But I do like to say that it doesn’t always come easily,” explains Associate Principal Dave Mojica, who adds that a successful project is not just a beautiful building, it is one that meets the needs of both project stakeholders and the community.

Part of the innovative approach undertaken by Scott Edwards Architecture extends to its desire to seek out new and exciting projects across sectors including public, private, and especially not-for-profit, where it can integrate sustainable design principles.

“We make it a goal to have at least one new project type a year and we already are at two this year, so being innovative and being open to new typologies is really important to who we are and has led to a lot of the success in the past,” says Principal Hayley Purdy.

Further to new typologies, Scott Edwards’ architects are proponents of sustainable design and have been over its twenty-plus year history, though over the last couple of years it has really solidified this commitment to both people and the environment.

The path to net zero
Over the last two years, Scott Edwards Architecture has integrated sustainability in its projects in new and exciting ways through the addition of a full time Sustainability Director in Juliette Grummon-Beale and through the company’s participation in the AIA (American Institute of Architects) 2030 Commitment.

AIA’s 2030 Commitment is an actionable climate strategy that has the commitment of 1,300 architecture firms. More specifically, the 2030 Commitment offers these firms a practical path to net zero energy buildings by 2030 with a goal of carbon neutrality by 2050.

“The 2030 Commitment is just a mechanism that holds architects accountable in creating a pathway to net zero energy on all our projects. It requires signing on, creating an action plan, and recording project data. We’ve reported our project data now for two years,” says Grummon-Beale of this feat—a major one, considering the firm takes on around 200 projects a year.

To achieve this end, the firm has created structures, processes, and workflows that center around sustainability, health, and wellbeing to ensure targets are being met both internally and on the projects it undertakes across various sectors and typologies.

“That’s a really exciting piece of our process that we’re building on the back end. On the front end, we’re beginning to do more energy modeling and embodied carbon analysis,” explains Grummon-Beale of efforts to take the firm’s commitment to sustainability to the next level.

As Mojica explains, “Sustainability isn’t always just energy performance and how we’re performing from a healthy environment; it’s also about how we’re creating appropriate spaces, community engagement, and successfully integrating it into the actual design.”

Designing community
The intrinsic nexus between equity and sustainability is another key element of Scott Edwards Architecture’s vision and applies to every project regardless of typology, but it is an especially important element of its affordable housing work. “To be equitable, sustainability is a component of that and a critical component of its success as well; it’s also a component of being innovative and thinking forward about design as well as how we integrate sustainability with our people-first approach,” Purdy explains.

One project that reflects this thinking is the award-winning Centennial Place Apartments in Southeast Portland, a 71-unit multifamily affordable housing project for Cascadia Health that achieved Earth Advantage Platinum, the highest level of certification Earth Advantage provides for multifamily structures.

The project featured a sizeable 75-kilowatt solar array on the roof that is used to offset electricity costs of the centralized heat pump hot water system—a savings that is passed on to tenants. Additional strategies include a heat recovery system, a robust drywell to manage 100 percent of stormwater on site, and some unique interior spaces that were designed to encourage the growth of community.

The building is built around a courtyard designed to include nature-based play opportunities for families. The common areas such as the laundry rooms and tutoring spaces look out onto the playground to create a network of safety and community for the families in the building.

“Because we had worked with this organization before, successfully providing multifamily housing, we were able to expand upon those successes and encourage, as well as challenge, that client to expand their thinking and willingness to embrace greater sustainable measures and do significant outreach within the community to integrate that feedback into the actual building layout and design,” Purdy explains.

When it comes to the creation of places and spaces that not only embrace but facilitate the concept of community, Scott Edwards Architecture hit it out of the park with the Viewfinder project for Community Development Partners in the Tigard Triangle. This six-story building is part of the urban revitalization taking place in that neighborhood, where zoning changes to improve vertical density are redefining an area previously characterized by single-family homes.

This introduced a unique set of challenges, as the project lacked a strong contextual culture. The goal of this project was to offer transitional housing for those in need of affordable housing, but that is a very broad population for whom to design. “From a design standpoint, the interesting challenge was, how do you create community when you don’t know the community that’s coming into the building and the context of the community—there’s not really much that exists from a placemaking standpoint,” says Mojica.

Scott Edwards Architecture saw this as an opportunity to create community and did so through several design considerations including multiuse spaces and community areas that facilitate passive and active engagement between residents on every floor. Further, the integration of art truly set the project apart.

“We found a local photographer that was from Tigard, we found a collage artist that was living in the Tigard community close to the site, and we found a Native American artist who was also from that area, and they created a body of work called Discovering Home,” explains Mojica. The project featured local places and information, including directions on how to get to the various locations featured in the images, which not only integrated the community into the building but offered opportunities for residents to interact with the Tigard Triangle community as well.

The team at Scott Edwards Architecture collected post-occupancy data on the Viewfinder project to determine the total operational carbon emissions on the project, and because of its performance, received the 2030 Merit Award at the 2023 AIA Oregon Architecture Awards.

One step at a time
Sustainability doesn’t always have to be the focal point of a project to have a positive impact. Scott Edwards Architecture also worked with Community Development Partners on the Mahonia Crossing project, which saw close collaboration with the client to encourage greater sustainability efforts and community-oriented design by focusing on one specific building in the complex: the 5,000 square foot community building.

“That’s a huge leap for multifamily, but it was about taking that opportunity on a standalone building: ‘we can do this and get them comfortable with the systems and comfortable with the technology,’” explains Mojica. “I think clients have to become comfortable with new technologies, new materials, new strategies, and this was a means of testing that out. It was also a place where we could implement solar and test the waters as far as that goes for our client.”

The structure, which is constructed from mass timber and features a butterfly roof, serves as a welcome center for the affordable housing complex. The complex was designed using a ‘community for all ages’ model which employed a new strategy in positioning the community center, which many insisted should be at the center of the complex.

“The community building really wasn’t bringing people together—it was dividing the community—so what we did was actually flipped it; the community building is actually at the entry of the development, and it serves as a welcome center, and then we placed the senior building right in the middle of the development,” says Mojica.

Seniors were regularly considered throughout the design process both in terms of housing availability and access, and the senior building was ultimately situated in the middle between the family housing and the community center to create passive cross-generational engagement. It is complete with a viewing deck from which residents can view the solar array for educational purposes.

These strategies resulted in a building tracking net zero energy performance and enrolled in Energy Trust of Oregon’s Path to Net Zero program to receive incentives and, while the client is certainly pleased with the results, for Mojica and Scott Edwards Architecture, “the team has been so lucky and proud to be working with clients that want to explore these things with us.”

Building on the momentum of these projects, the team at Scott Edwards Architecture will continue to find ways to engage with its clients to integrate sustainable, community-oriented design that demonstrates that amazing things can happen when you put people first. For Mojica, “The goal for all of us here, regardless of the type of work, is to be invested in positive placemaking, at all scales.”

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The company’s world-class products quickly earned an enviable reputation, and Dr. Wu’s business grew steadily. Today, Novalis remains family-owned and operated and boasts a presence in over 50 countries and six continents with its durable and versatile flooring options that have been used in numerous award-winning buildings around the world.

In addition to two production facilities in Zhenjiang, China, the company recently expanded its production capability with the 2020 opening of a new factory in Dalton, Georgia to meet a rising demand in the United States. The company maintains offices in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Hanoi, Cologne, and in North America in Richmond Hill, Ontario and Mooresville, North Carolina. The business boasts additional sales offices and distribution partners across Asia Pacific, Africa, Europe, and North America. Novalis employs 1,400 people worldwide and has 1,500 monthly container shipments to 50 destinations across six continents.

While the company has grown substantially over the decades, its core principles have remained consistent. “I think it’s a real benefit to Novalis that it’s still family-owned,” says Novalis Sustainability Manager Joost Luhmann. “We are able to have direct communication with ownership and routine meetings help us make decisions quickly. We are not moving slowly; we are always, I think, a bit ahead of our competitors.”

This ability to act swiftly ensures that the company stays ahead of any new technologies or potential issues that arise. “We were one of the first companies in our line of business who really focused on sustainability,” Luhmann says. “We have always invested in new technologies, and we are still driving initiatives in Europe, the U.S., and China when it comes to transparency and new product or sustainability standards.”

Novalis serves a variety of markets including single and multi-family residences, hospitality, retail, corporate, and education. To meet the needs of these markets, the company has developed the brands AVA, NovaFloor, and DuraDecor, all of which are known for their quality. “We are not the cheapest; we don’t want to be,” states Luhmann. “We don’t want to compete with market entry-level products. We consider ourselves a premium supplier.”

As Novalis’ commercial brand, AVA’s mission is to provide products that improve quality of life with aesthetic design and green processes. Inspired by nature, consumer trends, and high fashion, NovaFloor combines originality with modern aesthetics to provide beautiful, versatile, and sustainable products for the residential market. DuraDecor contains several chic, trendy visuals that come in a variety of styles, including peel-and-stick tiles, making this brand ideal for home improvement customers ready for an easy, do-it-yourself project.

Whatever the brand or target market, Novalis is fully committed to sustainability. This includes becoming carbon neutral by the year 2040 and actively working to reduce waste and reduce energy and water consumption. This commitment also requires complete transparency.

“We want to be the most transparent [luxury vinyl tile] manufacturer,” Luhmann affirms. Customers are eager to see proof of sustainability and the team is eager to provide that assurance. “They want this transparency from us, so we said, ‘Okay. We need to do something. We need to be ahead of the other manufacturers.’”

The company uses the latest technology to meet this demand for transparency and traceability. “For all of our products, we have developed a digital product passport,” he explains. This puts the company ahead of the curve as an early adopter of a technology that “will, at some point, also be required by EU legislation.” Leading in this area not only appeals to existing customers, but also attracts new customers who are committed to sustainability.

Novalis’ Digital Product Passport aims to quickly and clearly answer three key customer questions: Where does a product come from? What is it made of? Where does it go at the end of its life? A digital product passport allows consumers to view the details online, from lifecycle assessments to certificates and ingredients.

“This is accessible via a QR code on the back of the product,” Luhmann says. “All of our [AVA products] that are coming from China, from our Chinese operations, have engraved QR codes on the backside, and the customer, the end consumer, the installer, and also the recycler can scan it and see which ingredients are inside this product. We are disclosing all ingredients down to one hundred parts per million, so 0.01 percent.”

Novalis’ sustainability reporting provides additional transparency to its customers. “We did a comprehensive materiality assessment in 2022 together with SCS Consulting, where we asked all of our stakeholders which topics are the most important to them, what they want us to change. This also gave us some guidance for our strategy, for our targets.” The team has already put this knowledge to use, drawing on stakeholder feedback as they “implement some of the operating procedures to consistently report on our progress, to initiate a new project, for new product development, or for investments in renewable energy.”

Novalis has also created a sustainability committee to oversee its sustainability efforts and respond to growing regulatory requirements in Europe and North America. Membership is made up of the company’s CEO, Vice Presidents in Europe and North America, and Sustainability Managers. In addition to strategizing how to overcome today’s sustainably challenges, the committee is guiding the company with a vision for future sustainability efforts. By including executives and managers in both Europe and North America, it can better navigate the regulatory differences between the two markets. The North American managers mainly concentrate on operations in the United States, while the European portion of the committee focuses on European and Asian concerns.

As a whole, the committee is responsible for overseeing and guiding the company’s sustainability goals, ensuring that those goals are met, and driving change both within the company and throughout the industry. “We are coordinating all the different initiatives,” Luhmann shares. “We discuss it on a strategic level first, then break it down into smaller working items for our stakeholders.”

Armed with quality, market-leading products, a strong commitment to sustainability, and 40 years of success upon which to build, Novalis has a lot to look forward to.

“I think the future of the company is secured,” says Luhmann. “We have a great team. We are active in different market segments and areas. We are working with strong partners in the market.” The company will surely be one to watch as it continues to build on this solid foundation.

The post Leading the Luxury Vinyl Flooring Market<p class="company">Novalis Innovative Flooring</p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

Established in 1986 by Bill Gaylord, Alan Grainger, Chris Libby, and Clayton O’Brien-Smith—GGLO is one of America’s premier multi-disciplinary architectural firms. Encompassing much more than just design, GGLO taps into the creative minds of its staff to create custom-tailored solutions, “to craft a holistic story,” in their words.

Previously working together at a Seattle firm that designed similar project types—primarily urban mixed-use residential works—GGLO’s founders “wanted more autonomy in how projects were designed and managed, with a strong emphasis on design, client service, and work/life balance for its staff.”

Focusing on work that meets and exceeds client expectations, GGLO views projects as opportunities for responsible environmental design, balancing carbon reduction, health, social equity, and artistic expression.

The core of design
Shortly after its founding, GGLO added Interior Design services, followed by Landscape Architecture and Urban Design. In the mid-1990s, the firm developed its expertise in Sustainability, which remains a core part of its design work. The ability to design at all scales, from inside to outside and back again, is integral to GGLO’s design process.

Now, in its second, third, and fourth generation of owners, GGLO continues to uphold the vision and values of its founders. “We wanted to get our arms around all aspects of design, and supplement [our expertise] with outside consultants for engineering services,” says Winans.

Starting with its Seattle, Washington-based location, GGLO expanded to include Los Angeles, California in 2015 to serve clients along the West Coast, and Boise, Idaho in 2019 to serve Mountain West regions. “We characterize ourselves as one office with three doors which can perform all aspects of service and also supplement the smaller offices from the Seattle office.”

The roots of energy efficiency and energy codes pre-date the founding of GGLO, going as far back as 1977. Public interest motivated Washington’s policymakers to establish energy-efficiency targets and energy codes to reduce loads on utilities, minimize the need for additional facilities, and accommodate growth.

A voluntary requirement at first, the State Building Code Act and State Energy Code Act (SECA) were passed by the legislature in 1985. According to the Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy, “The State Building Code Act gave rulemaking authority to the State Building Code Council (SBCC), which oversees all building and energy codes within the state.”

In 1986, the first state-wide energy code was adopted. Based on ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90A-1980, it applied to all new buildings. More amendments came in the following years regarding more restrictive HVAC equipment codes, increased equipment efficiencies, lighting requirements, and other modifications. These energy codes have continued to evolve and remain among the most stringent in the nation.

Going green
“In the late 1990s, architects in our area were among the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) founders and early LEED APs,” Winans tells us. “These early adopters helped define sustainability in the built environment and there was a strong knowledge-sharing culture among firms.”

Along with LEED, Seattle’s electrical utility, Seattle City Light, offered incentives for energy-efficient features. The Master Builders Association of King & Snohomish Counties created their Built Green certification program in 1999. This set out to transform the building market to reduce the environmental impact of construction and operation of buildings.

“The affordable housing market was also developing certification systems such as SeaGreen, Evergreen Sustainable Design Standards, and Enterprise Green Communities, all of which GGLO has certified projects under. GGLO’s urban mixed-use residential projects were a perfect fit for integrating sustainable design as they accommodated many of the location and density-related priorities and our energy codes encouraged efficiency. Our affordable housing developments help address equity by improving access to safe and healthy housing to those with fewer economic resources.”

For GGLO, many projects are sustainable not just in terms of energy efficiency and eco-friendly building materials, but also in their location, with transit close at hand and walk- or cycle-ability to nearby amenities.

After taking on several projects under local incentive and certification programs, GGLO earned the first LEED BD+C: New Construction certification in 2005 for a mixed-use multifamily building in Seattle, the Alcyone Apartments. Described as “the ideal spot for those seeking a laidback lifestyle in an urban environment,” with amenities ranging from sailing and kayaking to bike trails and fine dining nearby, the Alcyone Apartments are in Seattle’s South Lake Union area.

Says Winans, “From this experience, we were hooked and have advocated incorporating sustainability in all our projects, whether or not they’re seeking third-party certification.”

The 2030 Challenges
In 2005, GGLO learned about The 2030 Challenges and began using energy models to track predicted operational energy use intensity on its LEED projects. A few years later, in 2008-2009, GGLO learned about the AIA’s upcoming 2030 Commitment to encourage firms to evaluate and reduce carbon emissions impacts from their operations and projects.

“We hosted a working group of local firms to provide input regarding proposed reporting tools and methods prior to the launch of AIA’s 2030 Commitment, and were among the first group of firms to sign on to the Commitment and report data in 2010,” says Jon Hall, Principal, AIA. “Our continued tracking and reporting of project performance has motivated us to continue seeking ways of improving year over year and gives us insights into what works and does not work,” he explains.

“More recently, voluntary embodied carbon reporting has been added to the AIA 2030 Commitment, and we were among the first firms to report data from life cycle assessment models. From this work, we were approached by the Carbon Leadership Forum to provide LCA models to help establish embodied carbon baselines for mixed-use multifamily projects.”

One of GGLO’s first projects, Café Flora, was an adaptive reuse project which saw an old laundry facility transformed into a restaurant. At the time, it wasn’t referred to as sustainable design or adaptive reuse, but simply good design and being efficient with the use of materials and resources.

“Sustainability has been in our DNA since the beginning, and this is just a natural evolution to where we are today,” adds Hall. “It was the right place, right time, right culture, and right fit; it all made sense as we evolved over time.”

Helping clients succeed
Speaking with its clients, GGLO keeps them informed about the many advances and benefits of green design and construction, such as health and wellness, energy efficiency, financial incentives, carbon reduction, and resiliency.

Recommending sustainable design workshops in Schematic Design organized around the AIA Framework for Design Excellence helps provide an overview of local policies, codes, and trends that can impact the design, and includes discussions about the incentives and design opportunities available on each project.

“From these workshops, we identify priority features to incorporate in the design and facilitate incentive discussions to help offset first costs,” says Winans, adding that, “GGLO helps our clients stand out in a crowded field.” This is integral to the firm’s holistic approach to sustainable building and shared values. “We start with seeking clients, staff, and consultants who align with our values. We make our values known on our website and in interviews.”

Since the late 1990s, GGLO has had dedicated staff focused on research, in-house consulting, knowledge sharing, and marketing the firm’s expertise, along with advocating for better codes and participation in sustainability-focused organizations. GGLO has developed standard scopes of work for proposals, workflow templates to help teams understand when to perform certain activities, opportunity workshop templates, in-house modeling expertise for operational and embodied carbon reduction, and performance tracking and reporting.

Great believers in sharing information to create an evolving knowledge base, the firm also publishes on its internal website to get the word out on lessons learned. Supporting professional accreditation, GGLO will reimburse staff for passing accreditation exams. “We look for self-starters with a natural curiosity to learn and grow and who are team-oriented with a collaborative mindset,” says Winans. “We also prefer staff with sustainable design project experience, whether in work or academic settings.”

Sustainable design is good design
At GGLO, there are differences between Net Zero and Climate Positive. Climate Positive design seeks to achieve a regenerative status. This means reducing the total carbon emissions of a project to below zero for both operational and embodied carbon. Net Zero is only focused on emissions related to operating buildings and does not consider embodied carbon emissions from building construction.

“Embodied carbon emissions are more immediate and impactful to climate change as they occur as a building is being built rather than over time. Neither Climate Positive nor Net Zero is easy to achieve at present for the scale of projects we’re typically doing on tight urban sites, but we are seeing improvements in both year over year, with operational carbon reduction leading the way. Through our deliberate design process supported by evaluation tools, close collaboration with our clients, landscape team, and engineering consultants, we are making significant progress.”

Some of the industry trends the firm is actively involved in include embodied carbon reduction in building materials, mass timber, monoblock heat pumps, CO₂-based heat pump water-heating systems, refrigerant transitions in HVAC equipment, ERV systems, and resiliency planning, along with materials selections that support a circular economy and ethical sourcing.

“All our projects strive for healthy, low-toxicity materials and we educate our clients on their options,” says Hall. “There are still some products that are hard to substitute for healthier options, such as vinyl windows and flooring due to first cost and durability issues, but new materials are coming online every day and we continue to evaluate the appropriate uses.”

On the renewables side, both Washington state and California now require photovoltaics with structural and pathway requirements built in for future additions. Additionally, electric vehicle (EV) charging is now being implemented in codes. In some locations, such as Boise, geothermal is a viable option in the urban core, as the capital city has a geothermal grid.

With a significant portfolio of over 40 LEED-certified projects at all levels and many more certified under various affordable housing certifications, GGLO remains one of America’s leading firms emphasizing the benefits of sustainable design.

The company was the landscape architect for Seattle’s first Living Building school project, the Living Building Science Wing at Bertschi School. GGLO’s WesternCedar high-rise project in Seattle is designed to meet the Living Building Challenge Pilot certification requirements. GGLO’s design at the Hopeworks Station North development in Everett, Washington was part of the International Living Future Institute’s Living Building Petal Pilot Project for Affordable Housing.

“Sustainable design and Climate Positive Design is simply good design, not a separate process,” says Hall. “GGLO has deep knowledge in creating vibrant and sustainable mixed-use communities and hospitality environments that enhance people’s everyday lives.”

The post Vibrant and Sustainable Mixed-Use Communities<p class="company">GGLO</p> appeared first on Construction In Focus.

As the only North American-owned company with integrated modular manufacturing operations in China, Stack Modular offers its clients significantly greater manufacturing capabilities than any competitor.

With offices in Vancouver, British Columbia, Calgary, Alberta, Mississauga, Ontario, and most recently Irvine, California; manufacturing facilities in Shanghai, Jiangsu, and Hong Kong; a managerial staff of 75; and the capability of hiring up to 500 project workers, Stack Modular has remained true to President Jim Dunn’s vision, “to disrupt the construction industry and revolutionize how the world builds.”

We enjoyed a wide-ranging interview with Geoff Baker, Stack Modular’s Vice President of Strategy, who brought to the company 15 years of experience in the modular industry when he joined four years ago, and Santiago Lazala-Silva, the company’s Marketing Specialist. They spoke of Stack’s beginnings and growth, partnership with Bird Construction, their capabilities, and how Stack is playing a key role in the move toward green buildings, energy efficiency, and solving the housing crisis.

Getting a start
Baker told us how company founder Jim Dunn was in Shanghai in 2009 when he had the idea of converting the shipping containers he saw on the docks into modules for offices and worker accommodation for the oil and gas industry, mainly in northern Alberta and Saskatchewan. However, Dunn quickly realized it would be much easier to build structural steel modules from scratch instead of converting containers that had been made for a completely different purpose.

“Jim also realized the strategic importance of manufacturing in China, the hub of the world’s supply chain, where just about anything can be sourced directly, bypassing exporters, importers, and brokers, [in whose hands] the price can quadruple. By manufacturing in China, Stack could operate efficiently and cost-effectively without sacrificing quality.”

After three years in business, and recognizing a tapering-off in the oil and gas industry, Dunn decided to change direction, moving to modular multi-family housing and other types of accommodation including hotels, student dormitories, long-term care facilities, and correction facilities.

Trajectory shift
A partnership with Bird Construction in 2017 marked a crucial turning point in the company’s trajectory, says Baker. “Jim had a vision of getting into larger projects, and to do that you have to think very differently.”

Traditional construction, he explains, has linear expenses, “starting with the architects, the groundwork, the site formwork, and ramping up for the finishing, but with modular construction, it’s the reverse. We need most of the money upfront, and the cash flow tapers off as we get close to finishing the project. So Jim’s vision was that we needed to partner with a large general contractor that could provide financial backing with a steady stream of sales and new jobs, and most importantly lend legitimacy to the project and our company,” he says.

“We were the first modular company to partner with a general contractor that we are aware of,” Baker continues. “It’s been an excellent partnership because there are huge benefits to being owned by a multi-million-dollar company that’s 105 years old. You don’t get to be that old by making bad choices, so this partnership has lent significant credibility to us and our projects.”

Today, Stack operates three manufacturing facilities in China with over 1.3 million square feet of manufacturing space and access to skilled North American-certified labour. But, best of all, using cutting-edge technology and streamlined processes, the facilities can produce 2,500 modules a year. With this capacity, Stack can offer a project schedule reduction of up to 30 percent to its clients when compared to traditional construction. This also translates into fewer worksite disruptions and reduced waste generated by the construction process.

Award winners
Stack Modular’s first major project in partnership with Bird Construction was the energy-efficient 102-room Asqarniit Hotel and Conference Centre, completed in 2019 on Baffin Island in Canada’s eastern Arctic, and winner of 2021’s ‘Permanent Modular Hotel Over 10,000 square feet’ from the Modular Building Institute.

Taking inspiration from Inuit culture, the asymmetrical structure was designed to be clad with LED-illuminated glass and steel in homage to the Northern Lights. After six months of fabrication in Shanghai, the 62 modules were loaded onto a breakbulk vessel at the port of Shanghai, crossed the Pacific to the Panama Canal, travelled up the Atlantic Coast to Baffin Island, and were delivered in July 2019, after 75 days at sea.

Asqarniit Hotel and Conference Centre was erected within 30 days, with fully functioning electrical, plumbing, and mechanical services. It was a remarkable accomplishment and one that would be impossible through traditional construction, given Baffin Island’s remoteness, bitter cold, and short periods of daylight. However, by scheduling its arrival and assembly in July, workers had almost 23 hours of daylight to complete the job.

In 2023, Stack Modular received three Awards of Distinction from the Modular Building Institute, the international non-profit trade association advocating for modular construction. Stack won awards for dormitories for Cedar Valley Lodge in Kitimat, British Columbia that will accommodate 4,500 LNG Canada project workers; for Kinshasa Patron Housing in the Democratic Republic of the Congo; and for IORDF, a correctional facility in Thunder Bay, Ontario.

“Corrections facilities typically take 30 to 36 months to design, build, and occupy, but we did two in 15 months for Infrastructure Ontario, with the other in Kenora,” Baker says.

After learning that 20 percent of the inmates in the existing Thunder Bay facility were Indigenous, Baker told us that Stack consulted with local First Nations groups about ways to make it a humane and healing place for Indigenous people. “We designed it with large windows and radiant in-floor heating, positioned it to look out over the lake, and chose colours so that each of the four wings represented one of the four seasons, important in Indigenous cultures. In every way, we tried to humanize the process and make it look less like a penitentiary, which is also beneficial for the staff.”

The greening of construction
From an environmental point of view, steel is a product that can be reused and most steel has a high recycled content, as opposed to wood, which is unusable when demolished. Steel is far more durable.

Adds Lazala-Silva, speaking from his experience of talking to plant managers: “There’s also a reduction of material usage, because less than three percent of the material we use is classified as waste, and can be recycled into new product. But in comparison, when there’s surplus or waste wood product in a construction project, it can’t stay in the cycle, either because it was cut too short for reuse or chemically treated, making it unsuitable for reclaiming. So, the way we build using steel is a lot greener, especially when compared with cross-laminated timber products.”

Baker goes on to tell us about the manufacturing contract Stack and Bird were awarded for a 14-story modular tower, the tallest modular structure in Canada, for BC Housing’s Permanent Supportive Initiative in Vancouver. When completed in early 2025, it will supply 109 intermediary housing suites for people who are homeless or housed precariously and will meet all passive house standards.

“[Passive House] is one of the most stringent environmental codes you can work to,” he says. “To meet the quality specs for passive housing, we need to have high-performance glass and windows and 10-inch thick exterior insulation. Typically, a passive house takes about 90 percent less energy to heat and cool. It’s a combination of airtightness, good insulation, good windows, and a good HVAC system. This one hits all the targets.”

However, as he notes, there is an added cost of 15 to 20 percent when building a passive house and there is likely to be a trade-off between environmental considerations and affordability.

Affordable housing – the need for change
Always mindful of costs, Stack Modular was able to reduce the project cost of a multifamily complex in Norwalk, California by 45 percent using an Integrated Delivery Approach, collaborating with AWI Architects, Bernard’s Construction, and subcontractors who made the project financially viable.

Fabrication of the 522 modules, which will create 371 housing units in two buildings, is scheduled to start this October. It is, according to Lazala-Silva, “the largest and most innovative modular construction project in North America and demonstrates the benefits of off-site modular construction in terms of cost, sustainability, and collaboration.”

Meanwhile, in April of this year, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau launched his program for solving the housing crisis, saying, “no hard-working Canadian should have to spend more than 30 percent of their income on housing costs,” and calling for 3.87 million new homes to be built by 2031.

We asked Baker for his thoughts. “I think it’s an interesting position and… Prime Minister Trudeau has named modular housing as one of the ways to fix the housing problem and that’s fantastic. But the challenge is that the government wants to build over three million homes by 2031 and we have never built that many homes in the history of our country,” he says.

“They want change, but they’re doing nothing to implement it; if you want to go from building 200,000 homes a year to a million, the process has to change. We’ve identified that the procurement process is too long and it takes years to get sites located and re-zoned and go through all the public committees that have their own opinions. We’re two and a half years in on the BC project, and we still haven’t built anything… if you want us to build these houses, then you have to change the way they’re procured,” Baker says.

“We also have to think about capacity. We don’t have enough modular manufacturers in Canada to complete even an eighth of what’s being requested and certainly not enough cash flow in the budget to fund these larger projects—but this is where Stack comes in. We have the ability to build large-scale, but [the red tape has] to get out of the way. If you want us to build, tell us where and what and let us design, build, and complete, and it will go faster,” he says.

“It’s great that they are throwing money at this project, but throwing money doesn’t solve it. They need industry representation at the table to show them how to maximize the dollars, otherwise it’s going to go to consultant’s fees. They’ve announced they want to create a library of approved designs and that does streamline the process, but they have to be replicable. If the government hires architects who’ve worked in traditional construction, then those plans will not be designed with the best intent for modular. They need a modular designer at the table,” Baker emphasizes. “It’s important to have the modular designer and an engineer at the table from the very beginning.”

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From public buildings to mansions, townhouses, and apartments, there is almost nothing the company cannot build in this way. Avalon is even building hotels for some of the biggest international names in the hospitality industry. To date, it has erected nearly 2,000 durable buildings along the East Coast since its inception in 1999.

Despite Avalon’s longevity, there is still confusion about what modular homes are. In the United States, it is common for people to mistake manufactured and hybrid modular homes for genuine modular homes. While both types of structures are prefabricated in factories, a truly modular building comprises a collection of wood-framed cubes, or modules, expertly engineered and fitted together to render beautiful, custom homes and even multi-story buildings up to five floors high, all while adhering to high-quality building standards. None of these attributes are a given when it comes to manufactured homes.

Avalon Building Systems’ structures are so well-designed and fabricated that it is easy to confuse them with site-built ones. That is, of course, in contrast with manufactured homes which are traditionally one-story high. And since the building codes in the area are of such a high standard, the company’s modular construction automatically complies with most Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) specifications. Beyond relying on its own expertise, the company partners with longstanding suppliers throughout the Northeast.

At times, it also happens that the team gets called in to do renovations on existing, traditional buildings. In many cases, President Paul Oliveira points out, the renovation cost is so high that, while still following strict local building regulations and code, demolishing and replacing them with modular homes often results in lower or similar expenditure for a brand-new home.

“Every home is engineered and stamped to meet local and national codes—which is not required in site-built construction,” he says.

As part of complying with energy efficiency ratings, Avalon’s modular buildings are as tightly sealed as well-built traditional buildings. Naturally, that means adding thorough ventilation to meet health and safety codes. “Our buildings are probably tighter than most,” he continues.

Many of Avalon’s clients are in highly urbanized areas like New Jersey, Boston, and New York, where labor costs are higher to match the cost of living but benefit from the company’s strategic, more rural factory locations. Since this allows for a considerable reduction in construction costs, it is also ideal for affordable housing.

Beyond the financial, environmental, and speed advantages, modular construction is far less disruptive to communities. Sites are becoming trickier to navigate in urban areas, so without the months of noisy construction and hardly any additional traffic, modular construction is a godsend. Adding to this is the added gain of incorporating recycled materials into modular construction.

After a quarter century of the exciting possibilities of modular buildings, the market is now increasingly accepting of this modern, more environmentally friendly building method—but this was not always the case. Oliveira saw the writing on the wall with regard to traditional construction—and the accompanying labor and cost challenges—more than two and a half decades ago. As an engineer, he decided to take matters into his own hands by building a company that is not just future-proof but also progressive in its methods.

Now, as fewer young people train in traditional trades, factory fabrication makes more sense every day. To Oliveira, modular buildings are superior in every way. “We can build anything,” he says. Modular buildings, he says, are superior “in terms of construction, efficiency, speed and timing.” With taller buildings, like hotels, featuring parking garages beneath and topped with as many as five stories, load bearing is typically solved by fortifying the base structure or podium with steel and/or concrete. That is then loaded with room boxes stacked on top of one another. As with the company’s homes, these buildings are completed in record time, with a standard hotel assembled in one week on average.

The value Avalon offers speaks for itself. Through high-volume bulk purchasing and fabrication by expert hands in a controlled environment according to strict specifications and quality control, these buildings stand head and shoulders above traditional wood and concrete construction, particularly in the current economic and environmental climate, Oliveira believes. “All the inefficiencies of site-built construction are gone. Many people think [modular] is very limited when, in fact, it is very expansive,” he continues.

Avalon Building Systems not only specializes in fabricating modular buildings; the team also uses modular foundations made of purpose-specific, pressure-treated lumber combined with concrete panels. These usually take only a day to place with a crane, further improving lead times. Furthermore, the company ensures that its equipment stays current, and this includes the software it uses to provide customers with a range of drawings and visualizations of future buildings. “Once people see the manufacturing process, they understand the quality of the product,” Oliveira says.

Growth in the industry continues to be driven mainly by cost considerations and striving for shorter lead times, and because of this, the company’s clientele and the size of its projects are also growing. This benefits Avalon, as doing business is not about hard selling as much as sharing information with prospective buyers. In essence, the selling is done by the product itself.

Acquiring one of these homes from the company is a process that is made exceedingly simple. Instead of selling clients an ideal, the team works to discover what people need. Initial meetings where exact customer needs and budgets are mapped are followed by preliminary designs, and once the client is happy, the engineering process starts. A professional engineer signs off on the plans and the building phase starts, with an approximate 10-week fabrication lead time.

The best part is that delivery day means these homes are complete with utilities, cabinetry, and absolutely everything they need to function as a home. “There’s nothing more amazing than having a family walk into a brand-new home. We have had people cry from happiness,” Oliveira shares.

Another great joy is, of course, the speed at which labor progresses. Clients may leave the building site with nothing but a memory of the foundations, only to return to an entire building welcoming them a day later.

As a result of its many happy customers and suppliers, Avalon has been honored with a number of industry awards. But the business would be nothing without its team of diligent, hardworking people. Following the firm’s established ethos of honesty and a clear work ethic, its staff members are all here because they excel at what they do. Priding itself on doing good, honest work has meant a lot of repeat business and word-of-mouth recommendations as satisfied customers refer friends and family to Avalon Building Systems.

The team takes customers’ needs to heart, with expedited service for disaster survivors being one way in which it gives back to the community. One case in point was when Avalon completed and delivered 30 homes to replace residences after Hurricane Sandy, the Category 3 Atlantic hurricane that cost New York and New Jersey over $69 billion in damage. Oliveira feels strongly about supporting disaster victims. “We’re happy to help people. They should come to us when there’s an issue like fire or some type of catastrophe; we will take proper care of them. We won’t take advantage of them,” he says.

Increasing numbers of developers are turning to Avalon Building Systems for solutions in the wake of rising subcontractor costs and the labor crisis, so there is an even more promising expansion on the horizon for this visionary firm. As its projects grow in size, the company continues to refine its systems and improve its processes, all to meet and exceed its customers’ needs.

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